Toy



Y June 5, 11923.

1 AS1972 A. C. GILBERT TOY Filed March 11, 1919 5 Sheets-Sheet 1gnbanlo-z June 5, H923; 11,457,972

A. c. GILBERT TOY Filed March 11, 1919 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 June 5, 1923. '7145mm A. GILBERT TOY Filed Ma rch ll 1919 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 June 5, 1923.1,457,972-

A. C. GILBERT TOY Filed March 11, 1919 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 June 5; 1%23.

A. c. G!LBERT TOY Filed March 11 1919 5 Sheeis-Sheet 5 attains;

Patented June 5, TQZE.

- UNETE D SAT-S riata rarer Fm.

ALFRED C. GILBERT, OF NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR TO THE A. C.GILBERT COMPANY, OF NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT,

a oonronarron or oonnnc'rrcu'r.

Application tiled March 11, 1919. aerial No. 281,970.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that 1,.ALFRED C. GILBERT,

residing in New Haven,

Haven, State of county of New" Connecticut, have invented certain newand useful Improvements in Toys, of which the following is a full,clear,

where a set 0 that can thereafter be readily for buildin otherstructures.

toys, and more toys of that class termed conf different parts variousstructures taken apart usually sold in the form of a building set,

comprising a box or other suitable container,v

containing a plurality of separate parts, and

detachable fasteners, such like, for fastening the pa various assembledrelations.

as bolts or the rts together in One of the primary objects of myinvention is to provide a toy of acter,

this general charwhich is so organized and constructed,

-that full'size playthings for children, and

more particularly vehicles of various adapted to supporter carry typeschildren, can be readily built up in various combinations. Moreespecially, my invention is directed to what might be termed afabricated wheeled vehicle toy for children, where certain parts,

of a relatively small number in the aggregate, are standard to andadapted to be com bined in various knockdown toy structures.

These structures are largely of the wheeled type and will preferably beof such size as to sustain the weight of one or more children.

One of the more specific objects ofthe invention is to provide a set ofparts which can be readily combinedinto various knockdown wheeledstructures, hand trucks, kiddie cars, coasters,

scooters, and the like. various articles can be built readily at dif-.

such as wheelbarrows, express wagons,

All of these ferent times with a set consisting of a minimum number ofparts, and structures thus formed design, that they can 'be used as vthe knockdown are of such size and and have such strength and rigidityery satisfactory substitutes for the corresponding permanentlly builtarticles now found e toys which can be built with my set c0r-- respond,of course, only in with the toy wheelbarrows, and the like, now found onin many instances, which can be built with my on the market.

a general way express wagons the market, and

the knockdown toys set involve feaclaimed.

The toy is 'toy horse, which can be built at found in permanently Fig.'3 is aperspective view showing the bottom of the wheelbarrow. a

' Fig. 3 is a vertical transverse section through the wheelbarrow bddy.

Fig. 4: is an enlarged transverse section coincident with the axle.

, Fig/5 is an enlarged detail. view of one ofthe wooden sticks.

' 'Fig. dis a section on line 6--6 of "Fig. 5-.

Fig.- 7 is a detail perspective view of the somewhat smaller scale bodyboard, on a are detail perspective views Figs. 8 and '9 of certainparts. t

Fig. 10 is a perspective view of a so-cal'led with my set. Fig. 11 is anenlarged detail view of the lower portion of the toy shown in Fig. 10.Fig, 12 is a perspective View of a snowshovel embodying certain parts ofthe set; and

Figs. 13- and 14: are perspective views f difi'erent forms of a childscart built with the new set' of parts.

In the description, I shall first explain the detail construction of thewheelbarrow,

and shall shown in Figs. 1' to 4; inclusive,

other then describe the manner of building toys.

The wheelbarrow comprises a body memher or board 20, preferably of woodcut in.- I

rectangular shape. The body member 15 shown in detail in Fig. 7, and itwill be observed that it is provided. with a. plur'ality ofperforations, hich will be described in greater detail hereinafter. At-

tached to the under surface of the body' member, and extending forwardlytherefrom are yoke pieces 21, between which the wheel 22 is mounted. Thewheel is preferably of the kind shown in my application, Serial No.277,823, and in this application I make no claim to the specificorganization of its parts. The yoke member's glare pref- 1 iit erablyarranged in parallel relation, as shown in Fig. 3, and they extendrearwardly beneath the body member for a considerable distance, beingattached to the body member near the forward edge of the latter by meansof bolts 23, and similarly attached 1 to said member in proximity to therear portion of the latter by bolts 24. These fastening bolts, which areall alike, pass through certain perforations in the yoke members andbody member for the purpose of making a suitable detachable connection.The wheel-' barrow also has handle members 25, similar to the yokemembers, and applied to the under surface of the body member at the rearthereof, in a generally'similar manner,

gy means of bolts similar to the bolts 23, 24..

ground, so as to act as a supporting leg for the wheelbarrow.

' The body of the wheelbarrow isycom pleted by means'of thin plates ofsheet metal detachably secured to the body member 20 by bolts and anglepieces, as hereinafter described. The side plates of the body are shownat .27, andthe front plate at 28. The front plate is, preferably trulyrectangular, but the side plates are preferably curved attheir rearends, as shown at 27.

Reverting to the details of the several parts, it will be seen that thebody member 20 consists of a wooden board having a plurality of verticalperforations, i. e.

' holes extending through the same from the /respectively in line withthe holes 29. These upper to the lower surface. There are holes 29 atthe four corners, and intermediate holes .30, adjacent the'front andrear edges holes 30 are equidistantly spaced from a longitudinal medianline, and their distance from each other is the same as their distancefrom the correspondin holes 29. The

holes 29, 30 at each end of t e board are in line with each other, so asto present a. transverse series. A longitudinal series of holes 31 isarranged in line with the holes 30 on one side of the longitudinalmedian line, 7 and a similar series of holes 31 is located symmetricallyon the other side of said median 1ine. Midway. of the length of theboard additional holes--32 are providedflatthe edges thereof in linewith the corner hole's129. An additional series ofholes 33 is providedon each side of the longitudinalmedian line. Each series of holes 33 .isiii line with the rear corner holes 29, but is directed inwardly at anacute angle,the for-- ward holes 33 of each inclined series beingsubstantially in transverse alignment with the holes 32, andintermediate the correspondin holes 32 and certain of the holes 31.

The di erent holes 31 in each series are spaced apart longitudinally ofthe board to correspond with the spacing between the holes 29 and theadjacent holes 30, constituting the transverse series of holes; and thedifferent holes 33 of the two inclined series have the same spacingrelatively to each other and to the holes 29 at the rear corners. One ofthe yoke members 21 is shown in detail in Figs. 5 and 6. Each of theseinembers consists preferably of a wooden piece or stick of approximatelysquare cross-motion.

series of holes 34 extends longitudinally of the stick, the spacing ofsaid holes corresponding to that between the holes of the longitudinaland transverse series of the board 20. The holes .34fof the respectiveseries are arranged at right angles to each other, and correspondingholes intersect, .as shown in Fig. 6.

Tn building up the wheelbarrow in the particular form shown in Fig. 3,the bolts 23 ass through certain intermediate perforations of the sticks21 and through the openher. Y The bolts 24, in the particular formshown, pass through the openings 34 at the rear end of the sticks 21,and through the rear openings of .therespective longitudinal series ofholes 31. The handle members 25 are secured to the board 20 by'boltswhich pass-through the rear corner holes 29 and the two rear holes ofthe inclined series of holes 33. The fastening bolts are provided Thestick is providedwith two longitudinal series of perforations or holes34. Each ings 30 at the forward end of the body memwith nuts 35 andwashers 36, as shown in Fig. 3", and theheads of the bolts are providedwith slots 37 for the insertion of a screw-driver. lit is understoodthat the bolts 38, '39 and 40 for securing the-handle bolts 23, 24, andinterchangeable therewith.

members to the body are similar to"; the

It will be observed that the same bolts 39,

40, which are used in detachably clamping.

the handle members to the body, also serve the function of securing the:metal straps '26, for which purpose the. lower 'ends of bolts 39,40,extend through perforations in the upper inturned end portions of thestraps. mental in securing the. metal plates 27, 28 to the body. ashereinafter described;

The wheel 22 is supported from the mem .bers' 21, by means oflooped-metal straps41,

one of which is showniln-detail. in Fig. 8.

The bolts 23, 40 are also instru Each strap 41 is provided at itsrear'portion with perforations42, spaced apart to correspond with thespacing of the holes34, 29,

30 and 31. At itsforward end the strap 41. isbent to form aclose'cllocp'43. In the parf and certain of as cotterpins 47, are then inshoreticular form shown, to the forwardly projecting portions of the members21 at the upper surfaces of said members by bolts 44, similar to thebolts previously described. These bolts pass through the perforations 42of the straps, the perforations 34 at the forward ends of the members21. The straps extend forwardly from the yoke members, so that the loops4:3 are rigidly supported slightly in front of the forward extremitiesof said-yoke members in line therewith, the axes of the loops 43 beingdirected horizontally and transversely, so as to serve as bearings foran axle 46, on which the wheel 22 is mounted. The axle 46 mayconveniently consistof a short section of metal rod adapted to fitrather snugly within the loops 43, which are located on opposite sidesof the wheel- The wheel is adapted to rotate about the axle, for whichpurose it is" provided with a bearing sleeve titted over the cylindricalintermediate part of the axle. lln assembling the parts, the wheel ispositioned between the loops 43, and the axle 46 is then passed throughthe loops and the wheel hub. Suitable fasteners, such passed throughtransverse perforations 48 in the protruding ends of the axle, saidcotter pins being adapted to abut the corresponding bearing members 43,so as to limit the endwise movement of the axle, as shown moreparticularly in Fig. 4. The wheel being interposed between the bearinmembers i3, and adapted to turn on the ax e, itis immaterial whether ornot the axle t'urns in its bearing members.

till

The plates 27, 28 of the body are secured toeach other and to the bodymember 20by' means of small sheet metal angles 49,0ne of which is shownin detail in Fig. 9. in each leg of the angle 49 is a perforation 50.Certain of these angles are secured upon the upper face of the bodymember by suitable bolts. As shown in Fig. 2, the angles at the rearcorners are secured to the body member by the bolts 40, previouslydescribed. The vertical legs of these angles are secured to therespective plates 27 by short bolts 52. In the form shown the frontplate 28 is similarly secured to the body 20 by other angles 49, throughwhich pass the bolts 23 for connecting the members 21 to the bodymember. The plate 28 is secured to the two plates 27 by upper and lowercorner angles 49 secured to the plates by short bolts 52. Variousarrangements may be made for se curing the plates to the body in asatisfactory manner by means of the angle members and suitable bolts.

It will be apparent the wheelbarrow structure, just described, may bemade very substantial and sturdyby providing parts of the requisitestrength. The parts can be readily assembled, and the process ofassent-- the straps 41 are applied I whee barrow structure.

bling is interesting and instructive. be apparent that in making a-toyvehicle along. the eneral lines, previously described,.-cons1derablescope is given to the builder in the matter of design and possiblecombinations of arts. A great many chan'es are possib e, for example, inthe The yoke members can be adjusted relatively to the body; the handlemembers can be adjusted relatively to the body and the other parts, soas to make a barrow of more or less length, as desired; the side platesof the body can be removed if desired; the supporting legs areadjustable; the wheel is adjustable by difi'er- It will cut applicationof the loop straps to the yoke members; and various other, changes andadjustments can be made according to the wish of the boy or girl.

Not only is in new system applicable, however, to a ve icle generallysimilar to the wheelbarrow illustrated, but it is also applicable to thebuilding of various other toys and laythings. A few other articles madefrom parts of the set are shown in Figs. 10 to 14 inclusivellt isobviously impossible to attempt to illustrate all of the variouscombinations that may be made. Fig. 10 shows what 1 term a toy horsehav-,- ing an elongated body adapted to be straddled by a child, withwheels on one end and handle-bar on the other end. The body is. formedof a short member or stick 21, identical with those previouslydescribed, connected to the end of another member 25,

identical with the members 25, previously described. A detachable bodyjoint between the members 21, 25 is ailorded by connecting straps 53 andbolts 54:. The handle-bar 55 is a piece of wood shorter than the members21, 25, but perforated in the same manner and connected with the member21 by angles 56 and suitable bolts. This structure has two wheels 22mounted on an axle 46 similar to the axle previously described. In thiscase, however, a single loop strap 41 is employed, secured in thepreviously describedmanner to the lower end of member 25. Getter pins4:7, likethose previously demribed hold the wheels 22 on theirrespective end portions of the axle on opposite sides respectively ofthe strap 41.

Fig. 12 shows a toy snow 'shovel made with parts of my newconstruction'set. 'The handle is similar to the structure shown in Fig.10. The blade of the shovel is constituted by the body member '20,previously de- 7 previously deshall not describe these arrangements inde tail in the present application, except to call attention to the usein these structures of numerous parts which are the same or identicalwith parts previously described. The handle or tongue is formed ofmembers 21,

- 25, interconnected by straps 54, with the r to the parts previouslydescribed. ll-shapedcrosspiece 55. The board .20 isused as a body, andtwo-of the plates 28 are used at the back in overlapping relation, so asto present in conjunction a true rectangle. lhe short side plates 56 areparts additional brackets 26 identical with those. previously described,are used for supporting the body on a suitable axle, and on this axleare wheels 22 similar to. those previously de-.

'imum number of interesting combinations can be built with a set havinga mlnimum number of'parts, the parts being adjustable andinterchangeable in many and various relations. The structures, whenassembled, are strong and substantial, and can be used as full sized toyvehicles and the like, which are adapted to support the weight of fairlyheavy children. The set has such a wide scope that it is extremelyuseful and a great deal of interest'can be obtained from it, at

. the same time that the child gains valuable knowledge and experiencein matters of mechanical construction.

It will be understood that I do not limit myself to the application ofmy invention to the particular structures herein described, as manychanges may be made without departing from the principles involved. In

addition tothe particular structures described, express wagons,coasters, kiddie cars, toy baggage trucks, go-carts, sleds, and manyother articles can be constructed largely or wholly from the individualparts herein shown and described. In' most of these toys, I use aperforated body member similar to the member 20, elongated memberssimilar to the members 21 adapted to be connected to the body member invarious relations, so as tosupport the same, or so as to support a wheelor the like from the bodymember, and a wheel or like member forsupporting the structure on the ground. The parts just referred to may,however, be combined in other relations, or omitted, or used with othermembers without departure from certain aspects of the invention,' 1

I do not'claim specifically herein the struck i tures'shown in Figs. 10to 14, as the structures shown in Figs. 10, ll and described and claimedin divisional application emma SerialNo. 290,312,filedApril15, 1919,while the carts shown in Figs. 13 and 14 are more fully described andareclaimed in divisional application 'Serial 2c, 1919.

What I claim is:

No. 292,877, 'filed April Till 1. A toy vehicle construction, including7 serving as yoke-members and others as handle members, straps carriedon the ends of said yoke members, a ground engaging device supported bysaid straps, and means for detachably connecting said yoke members andsaidhandle members to the body member,

2. A toy vehicle construction, comprising a wooden body member, sideplates therefor, a plurality of substantially identical elongatedmembers ad'apted to be connected to the body to serve as yoke membersand Bil handle members respectively, all of said members having aplurality of perforations spaced apart so as to register in variousrelations with perforations of other parts,

andthe'bolts andangle plates for securing the parts together.

3. A t-oy such as described comprising a perforated body member providedwith upper and lower substantially fiat surfaces, said perforationsbeing arranged in rows extending at various {angles to each other,

a pair of forwardly projecting substantially parallel perforated membersdetachably secured to the lower flat surface of the body, a pair ofrearwardly projecting diverging perforated members detachably secured tothe lower flat surface of the body, the per: i

forations of said forwardly and rearwardly [projecting members equallyspaced and registering with certain perforations of the body member, anda ground engaging device detachably secured to said parallel forwardlyprojecting members.

4. A toy such as described com rising a perforated body member provl edwith upper and lowersubstantially fiat surfaces,

said perforations being arranged in rows extending at various angles toeach other, a pair of forwardly projecting substantially ltd parallelperforated members detachably secured to the lower flat surface of thebody, a pair of rearwardly projecting diverging perforated membersdetachably secured to the lower flat surface of the body, theperforations of said forwardly and rearwardly projecting members beingequally spaced and registering with certain perforations of the bodymember, and a ground engagin deyice 'detachably' secured to said paralleforwardlyaprojecting members, said ground enga ing evice being mountedupon strap mem ers and. thereb supported Iorwardly of said parallel memere.

5. A toy vehicle construction, comprising the body member, and commonmeans for a body member, a plurality of substantially securing the angleplates and handle mem- '2 identical elongated members connected to bersto the body member. the body member, some of which project for 7. In atoy construction, a body member Wardly in parallelism to each other andsupprovided with a plurality of series of perfoport a ground engagingdevice on their torrations, and a plurality of elongated mem- Ward ends,others being adapted to project hers correspondingly perforated to bese- 2 rearwardly in diverging relation to serve cured thereto, some ofsaid series of peras handle members, said body member and forations ofthe body member being disposed said elongated member being so perforatedin parallelism, and others at an angle to that any one of the elongatedmembers may those of another series, whereby the elonbe usedinterchangeably for any one of the gated members may be applied to thebody 0 others. member in parallel or in diverging re- 6. In a toyconstruction, a body member, lation.

; side plates adapted to be secured thereon, in Witness wh reof, l havehereunto set angle plates for securing the side plates my hand on the6th day of March, 1919. to the body member, yoke members and handlemembers adapted to be secured to ALFRED C." GILBERT

